DC vs. Marvel

Following the 1995 Green Lantern/Silver Surfer one-shot comic, came the 4 part mini-series comic DC versus Marvel, featuring battles between the heroes of DC Comics and Marvel Comics with the fate of both universes at stake. Two immensely powerful beings from each universe decided that the universes' heroes must battle and the losing heroes' universe would be destroyed. In issue #3 Superman battles and defeats Marvel's Hulk. At the end of issue #3, the two universes were temporarily merged into being the Amalgam Comics universe before being recreated in issue #4. The series ended with the debut of a new hero named Access, after Batman and Captain America persuaded the beings that both universes should exist.

As part of this joint publishing event, in February 1996 DC Comics and Marvel Comics published several one-shot comics using the Amalgam Comics imprint. A tie-in Amalgam trading card set was also released.

UNDER THE COVERS OF AMALGAM COMICS

Following the announcement of the unprecedented merging of the DC and Marvel universes in the upcoming AMALGAM COMICS, curiosity over the content of the 12 Amalgam titles has reached fever pitch. To satisfy at least some of that demand, DC Comics has released a roster of the 12 one-shots to be published by the two companies on February 28, each with a brief summary:

Shipping from DC Comics --

LEGENDS OF THE DARK CLAW #1
Adamantium claws, a ferocity driven by old wounds, and a dark batlike countenance to make his enemies' blood run cold: These are the elements that make a man the Dark Claw, nocturnal protector of Gotham City.

SUPER-SOLDIER #1
Transformed by an experimental infusion of alien DNA, ordinary human Clark Kent became America's greatest super-powered hero of World War II; revived in modern times after a freak accident of suspended animation, Super-Soldier battles the undying menaces of Ultra-Metallo, the Green Skull, and the subversive terrorist organization Hydra.

AMAZON #1
Reared on the hidden island of Themyscira, weather-wielding mutant Ororo Monroe ascended to become warrior-champion of the Amazon civilization... and one of the most powerful forces for good the Amalgam Universe has ever known.

JLX #1
Mr. X. Apollo. Firebird. Nightcreeper. Wraith. Runaway. Mercury. Mariner. Together they're the JLX, outlaw metahuman heroes hated by the world they've sworn to protect... and hounded by the avenging heroes of the JLA!

ASSASSINS #1
Dare and Catsai -- fierce enemies and two of the deadliest femme fatales in the Amalgam Universe -- forge an uneasy alliance against an elite gang of killers.

DOCTOR STRANGEFATE #1
The universe's Supreme Lord of Order is Doctor Strangefate, a mysterious helmeted mage who may well be the most powerful being on Earth. He alone knows that this universe is an amalgam of two separate and distinct realities... and he wants to preserve this new continuum at any cost.

Shipping from Marvel Comics --

SPIDER-BOY #1
He's cool. He's smooth. He sticks to walls. And he has a serious attitude problem! The Amalgam Universe's maverick Arach-Kid battles Bizzarnage and goes swinging with Insect Queen!

BRUCE WAYNE: AGENT OF S.H.I.E.L.D. #1
Driven by the murder of his parents, a grim multibillionaire uses his wealth to build a political power base and take command of the Amalgam Universe's premier espionage force.

BULLETS AND BRACELETS #1:
A partnership is born as rogue Amazon Princess Diana forges an uneasy alliance with the Punisher against the menaces of Monarch Jim Rhodes and Thanoseid!

MAGNETO AND THE MAGNETIC MEN #1
Adapting the robotic technology that his mutant-hating brother Will Magnus used to create the Sentinels, Magneto creates five robots, each formed from a different metal, to protect his fellow mutants.

Also shipping for Amalgam week from Marvel is an oversized, 4-color retail poster with pencils from The Uncanny X-Men's Joe Madureira, inks from Mark Farmer, and color by Steve Buccellatto.

Amalgam - Part 2

The twelve issues of Amalgam Comics were released upon an unsuspecting public in March, 1996, introducing shocking new characters such as Spider-Boy, Dark Claw, Super-Soldier, Dr. Strangefate. But readers were allowed to explore only the smallest part of this brave new world before the Amalgam universe unzipped. The fans begged for more -- and the creators were eager to please, so get ready to be Amalgamated all over again! Here they come: twelve mind-warping, action-packed one-shots, all hitting comic-book stores on April 2.

One name. One universe. One more time.

BAT-THING #1
The denizens of the Amalgam Universe learn a new name for horror in this heart-wrenching tale of tragedy and terror! When a scientist mutates into a creature part human and part bat, the world can only call him Bat-Thing! No longer a man, driven only by thoughts of revenge, the hideous Bat-Thing seeks revenge on the motorcycle gang responsible for his cursed existence!

THE DARK CLAW ADVENTURES #1
Based on Dark Claw: The Animated Series! There's an assassin loose in New Gotham and her name is Lady Talia. She and Dark Claw share a past, when he was forced to kill her father Ra's A-Pocalypse. Unable to forgive him, Talia is out to kill Dark Claw and even facing simulacrums of many of his deadliest foes in the Danger Cave may not prepare him to face her wrath and razor claws.

GENERATION HEX #1
Ride into the past of the Amalgam Universe, and see what happens when Jono Hex, a disfigured renegade, puts together a posse of the baddest mutants this side o' Texas, on a gunslingin' mission of revenge. Skinhunter, Madame Banshee, and the mysterious Retribution are only some of the mutant outlaws who exact their wrath on the town of Humanity.

JLX UNLEASHED #1
"The Inextinguishable Flame": The JLX were decimated by the Armageddon Agenda. Mr. X is to be deported to Mars. Apollo is comatose, and the rest are in custody. Then, the Hellfire League of Injustice strikes the final blow by summoning Fin Fang Flame!! The burning dragon will lay waste to all in his path until the last metamutant is dead. It's the last stand for JLX-and humanity!

LOBO THE DUCK #1
In a frag-and-feathers-filled free-for-all, our hero, the plucky cigar champing Lobo the Duck must learn the identity of the evil genius responsible for the complete destruction of Manhattan and the tragic and inexplicable deaths of Spider-Boy, Super-Soldier, Dark Claw, Doctor Strangefate, and the rest of the Amalgam heroes. Not even his faithful and neglected girlfriend/waitress Bevarlene can soothe his savage temper. And when Lobo the Duck's frequent rival Lunatik-Bug gets in his way, his pays dearly for his false pride. Beware the long-reaching hand of... DOCTOR BONG-FACE!!!

SUPER SOLDIER: MAN OF WAR #1
The amazin' Amalgam Universe marches on! And this time everyone marches to the swingin' drumbeat of the WWII grunt behind the lines in Nazi Germany! That's right, true believer, this fanatical flashback story takes place in the glory-days of the Golden Age of Amalgam as Super-Soldier faces front with Sgt. Rock and his Howling Commandos! The maniacal Major Zemo has got the Howlers trapped in his creepy castle in Nazi Germany being prepped for his even creepier experiments, when Super-Soldier makes the save! But can the combined might of the Man of Steel and the Man of Rock (and his men) overcome Zemo's ultimate weapon-the War Wheel! Guest starrin' Wondrous Winston Churchill and the Historifyin' All-Star Winners Squadron!

Starting in October 1996, DC and Marvel went at it again, this time with DC vs Marvel: All Access, a four-issue miniseries reuniting the heroes and villians of the two universes. Centered around the new hero - Axel Asher (Access) who having shards of both universes inside him is able to transport himself and others between the DC and Marvel universes.

The series was Written by Ron Marz, Pencilled by Jackson Guice and Inked by Joe Rubenstein.

All Access #1 (Dec 1996)
"The Crossing!"
Venom somehow is in Metropolis. Superman has trouble until Access brings Spiderman to help, and then returns things to normal?

All Access #2 (Jan 1997)
"Two Sides of the Same Coin"
Helping Jubilee & Robin reunite, Access may have created problems for the 2 Universes. Two-Face gets in the way, as does the Scorpion!

All Access #3 (Late Jan 1997)
"In The Doctor's House"
Batman quickly despatches Scorpion, and then helps Access find Dr Strange in the Marvel Universe, but the X-Men have other ideas.

All Access #4 (Feb 1997)
"Savior"
The JLA step in to save Batman, and a full scale war breaks out. Dr StangeFate begins recreating the Amalgam Universe but Access stops him. It appears that the Amalgam Universe lives on in its own minature globe in Access' possession.

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February 29: Traditionally recognized as Superman's birthday!
March 1: Tim Daly, voice of Superman in Superman: The Animated Series, born in New York, NY in 1956.
March 1: Zack Snyder, director of the Man of Steel movie, born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA in 1966.
March 1: Jensen Ackles, Jason Teague in Smallville TV series, born in Dallas, Texas in 1978.
March 9: Artist Rick Burchett (Superman Adventures) born in 1952.
March 12: Traditionally recognized as the birthday of Perry White, editor of the Daily Planet.
March 14: Kirk Alyn, star of two serials, Superman and Atom Man vs Superman, dies in 1999 of natural causes, aged 88.
March 25: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is released to theatres in 2016.
March 25: Krypto The Superdog premieres in the U.S. on Cartoon Network in 2005.
March 26: Artist Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez (Action Comics) born in 1948.
March 31: In 1959, Action #252 introduces us to Superman's cousin, Supergirl.
March 31: Marc McClure, Jimmy Olsen in the Christopher Reeve Superman movies, born in San Mateo, California in 1957.